Star Wars - Bria Tharen: Chapter 2
Star Wars - Bria Tharen: Chapter 2 is the second bundle of comic-styled stories in the ongoing Star Wars - Bria Tharen storyline. The second chapter is also known as A Deal with the Hunter. It consists of 3 issues. Issues Issue 1: A Deal with the Hunter #1 In the Sunken Pride Cantina on Coruscant, Bria and T5-C1 entered. Bria questions T5 whether he is sure that their contact was supposed to meet them here and T5 affirms the information and Bria decides to get a drink at the bar. Here they meet the contact, a Sullustan named Sian Tevv, needing Bria's help with acquiring the funds of his rich and influental family here on Coruscant. Bria agrees to help him out and Tevv offers to remove persuade Jax Teel from removing the bounty placed on her head if she succeeds. Surprised that Teel would stoop that low in order to get revenge for the contract of Jabba the Hutt, Bria contacts Senna and Lunak aboard the Sapphire Hawk and says they have a new job. She arrives at her private hangar, but finds Kol Eka waiting for her. Assuming he is here to capture her for the bounty, she attacks, but Kol has her stand down and says he is willing to waver the bounty if she gets him in on her contract. Bria doesn't believe him and is about to have Senna target him with the onboard laser cannons, when Kol reveals he has direct access to the vaults of the Tevv Conglomerate, right here on Coruscant. He doesn't give her much choice as Lunak and Senna both confirm they can't slice into the security systems of the Tevv Conglomerate. At that point a pair of IG-65 Assassin Droids appear and Kol and Bria are forced to work together to kill them. Bria and Kol escape with the Sapphire Hawk from the spaceport and set off to the Manarai Mountains, where Lunak and Senna reveal that they learned that the vaults of the Conglomerate are hidden within the Mountains. Kol takes over the rear of the ship and flies it around the Mountains, revealing a secondary entrance to the vaults to be on the other side. Bria orders Lunak and Senna to stand guard at the platform, while she, Kol and T5 get inside the vault. T5 slices the entrance and they get in, but the moment the three of them are inside, the gate slams shut, forcing them to face the darkness inside. Issue 2: A Deal with the Hunter #2 Bria Tharen and Kol Eka are trapped now within the vaults of the Tevv Conglomerate inside the Manarai Mountains, when Kol pulls out a mapreader that shows them that they are close to the larger vaults. Inside the Sapphire Hawk, Lunak and Senna work on the engine protocols of the Sapphire Hawk, when they learn they are being tracked by a couple of Drones. T5-C1 manages to slice into one of them and land it on the aft of the Sapphire Hawk. In the meantime Kol leads Bria to the entrance of the larger vault while managing to activate a lighting system, revealing that they are not just within a vault but also a former archeological dig site. Kol reveals to Bria that the Manarai Mountains according to legend were home to the Tevi Genii, a nearly extinct species that lived here since Coruscant's discovery 25,000 years ago. Kol reveals he is able to read the carvings in the wall, telling the tale of the Tevi Genii worshipping their own self-proclaimed gods, a Pantheon of seven gods that each represented a natural element. The Jedi found them so interesting that one of the first Jedi Masters in the First Jedi Order was a Tevi Genii named Sa-Yun Kal. As they progress on, Bria accidently triggers an automatic defensive system, that releases a group of Ancient Force Sentinels hunting them. Having encountered those on Ocul, they make a run for it, getting to high enough ground to be able to contact the Sapphire Hawk, who by then have discovered the owners of the drones, the Tevv Conglomerate who are approaching fast, led by Laqua Tevv. Bria and Kol decide to make it quick and manage to lead the Ancient Force Sentinels to the entrance where the Conglomerate forces have gathered. Using the Force Sentinels as a distraction, Kol and Bria go back inside and haul some valuable cargo with them back to the gate. Realizing one of the drones is springloaded by explosives, Lunak attaches it to the shut gate and blows it up, giving Bria and Kol enough time to transfer a considerable amount of funds into the Sapphire Hawk. However as Kol and Bria come outside, they are surrounded by drones and ships of the Conglemerate led by Laqua Tevv. As they pump the Sapphire Hawk full with fire, the crew and Kol make a stand, before Bria is grabbed from inside the temple and pulled inside, before the blown up gate is collapsed! Issue 3: A Deal with the Hunter #3 As is revealed, Bria Tharen was pulled back into the mountains by Sian Tevv, who had made his way there too, knowing all to well that the Tevv Conglomerate would come at full force. He reveals that the Conglomerate, ever since the fiasco around the Blockade of Naboo that was caused by the actions of the Conglomerate, the Black Sun Syndicate and the Trade Federation almost fifteen years ago, the assets of the Conglomerate are in jeopardy and he wants them before the Republic takes control of them. Bria has half a mind to get him to the authorities, when Sian reveals he has another way out of the Mountains. Not wanting to leave the rest of the crew behind, Bria heads back to the rock and Sian agrees to help out if they help him get the funds he wanted. They manage to sneak out, while Sian uses a secret override code to activate the B1 Battle Droids aboard the ships of the Conglomerate. This allows Bria and Sian to free Lunak, Senna and Kol Eka who overpower the guards and T5-C1 takes control of the Battle Droids. They fight the Conglomerate off the landing pad and Sian manages to corner Laqua, ordering him to stand down. Laqua reveals that not only is Sian someone they kicked out of the Conglomerate, he is also a traitor to the Trade Federation. Holding a grudge against the Trade Federation due to them being responsible for her mother's death, Bria turns against Sian but Sian reveals he knows where her father is. Bria turns against Laqua and shoots him, dropping him off the landing pad into the endless depths of Coruscant, after which the forces of the Conglomerate retreat. This gives Bria and her gang enough time to get the funds that Sian wanted out of the vaults. While they head for the appartment of Sian, Bria threatens Sian that if it was not for the fact that he knows where her father is, she would have gladly killed him. Sian keeps his promise and transfers parts of the funds of what he got to Jax Teel in order to have him call off the bounty. He then reveals that Brayden Tharen is on Nal Hutta. With that revelation, Kol pulls the trigger and kills Sian anyway. He admits knowing that Bria wouldn't have pulled the trigger so he did it for her. Before he activates his jetpack in order to jump ship in flight, he says he holds no grudge against Bria for what she did earlier. Bria tells him to take part of the funds, she doesn't need it all and Kol tells her to take care before taking off. Bria then turns to T5, Lunak and Senna and tells them to set course for Nal Hutta. Chapters 1 - 2 - 3